Ready, Set, Row: How to Master the Rowing Machine

“Harmony, balance, and rhythm. They’re the three things that stay with you your whole life. Without them civilization is out of whack. And that’s why an oarsman, when he goes out in life, he can fight it, he can handle life. That’s what he gets from rowing. —George Yeoman Pocock” ― Daniel James Brown, The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics

The gym is full of machines designed to improve our performance, but it can feel like spinning on a hamster wheel if we don’t have it mastered. There are Treadmills, Arc Trainers, Ellipticals, and Stationary Bikes… and then there are the Rowing Machines.

The Benefits

When it comes to an efficient, time-saving workout, you can’t go wrong with a rowing machine (or Erg machine). In one workout, you get a cardiovascular exercise, plus you activate both your upper and lower body’s major muscle groups. Just like cycling or running, you can control the intensity with the effort you exert. However with rowing, the effort involves the whole body!

Once you build up to it, a vigorous rowing workout will burn 500-1000 calories/hour while still being a very low impact workout. Rowing has very little pounding on the joints, so a workout provides the calorie burn of a treadmill session with the strength building of calisthenics. I can tell you from personal experience, I have regained the lost range of motion in my knees and hips through rowing.

The Technique

To get the benefit of the rower you really need to pay attention to technique. Most people approach the rower like they are starting a lawn mower. They sit on the seat, grab the handle, and pull with wild abandon until they are huffing, puffing flying back and forth with sweat flying to the bitter end. Hint: you don’t have to look like you’re working hard to get a good workout. With some simple adjustments to technique, anyone can look like an Olympian crossing the finish line for the gold (rather than a frustrated landscaper).

First, resistance is futile. Many gym rats (and even trainers) will have you crank up the gauge to max (i.e. 10). Most rowers have a way to set a drag factor that is designed to mimic a style of boat in the water and it has nothing to do getting a great workout. You can get an excellent workout with the damper somewhere in the middle. (Find out the style of rower at your gym, then consult their website for adjusting the drag factor.) Honestly, you can put it on the lowest setting and you will get a more than adequate workout. Think of it like this: the higher the setting, then the wider the boat. Have you seen how skinny those sculling boats are? Have you seen the bodies on those Olympic Rowers? Trust me– don’t overuse the damper setting. Find the highest setting where you can comfortably complete the stroke with good technique over time.

Now with regards to technique, it can be summed up with a simple mantra.

Legs, back, arms…Arms, back, legs!

The Positioning

When you start, make sure your legs are bent and your chest is just a few inches from your thighs. Your hands hold the handle with the arms straight in front of you. Rowers call this the “Catch” position, because if you had oars in the water, the blades would be catching the water as you pull them though to propel the boat.

From this Catch position, you push through your heels and the seat slides back. The arms remain straight, and the head and chest stay slightly forward like they are pointing at 11 o’clock. Here is where a lot of people make a mistake and let the legs relax and roll back to the catch position. Instead, fire up the hip hinge and lock down the shoulders to pull the back and head to the 1 o’clock position and then to get just a little more pull the hand into just below the rib cage. This is called the “Finish” position.

From Catch to Finish, the rower explodes with power to mimic pulling the boat through the water with the oars. These motions together are called the “Drive.” You let out your breath and prepare for the next step called the “Recovery.”

Ideally, the Recovery is 2 or 3 seconds longer than the Drive. First the arms go back straight in front of the body, then the back returns to 11 o’clock, and finally the legs relax and fold the body back into the coiled position of the Catch.

Take a big breath and drive again.

The Practice

Indoor rowing can be incorporated into many fitness plans. A 7-10 minute session on the rower is an excellent warm up prior to a weight training session. And for weight loss, what could be better for your joints than an exercise that you can do while sitting down? Give your joints a break and go at your own pace without having to program any computer like you would on an elliptical or recombinant bike.

Most people like to build up their rowing workout over time or distance. Try 10 minutes at your first session, then 15, then 20, then even more. Some of us even take that indoor rowing skill on the water!

Now that you’ve read these helpful guidelines, try a total body rowing workout for yourself. You could be cruising in no time!